White House: POTUS can use recently allocated border security funding for a WALL

(National Sentinel) Build It: A White House spokesman told Fox News‘ “Fox & Friends” morning show on Monday that funds allocated for border security and the military in the spending package signed into law by President Donald J. Trump on Friday can be used to begin construction of his proposed border wall.

Since Trump signed the measure, there has been some confusion surrounding the $1.6 billion in funding for border security enhancement. Most reporting has indicated that Trump was prohibited by the funding bill’s language from using any of those border security funds for wall construction.

However, White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley cleared up the White House’s reading of the legislation.

“The speaker [House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.] told us you can use concrete,” host Steve Doocy said to Gidley. “Senator [Charles Schumer [D-N.Y.] says you can’t. Only improve the fence. What are you saying there? You can use it?”

Gidley responded, “It’s my understanding you can,” noting that the “Hispanic caucus came out vehemently against this bill for two reasons,” The Daily Callerreported.

“One is because in the letter they wrote to the president it bolsters the president’s deportation force, quote-unquote, and it builds a wall,” he said.

Last week, after the measure passed the House on Wednesday, White House spokesman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said “100 miles” of new wall had been authorized by Congress in a tweet.

.@POTUS talked w/ @SpeakerRyan & @SenateMajLdr about priorities secured in the omnibus, which all support, especially more $ to rebuild military (largest pay raise for troops in decade),more than 100 miles of new border wall, $ to fight opioid crisis & rebuild our infrastructure

That said, the spending measure contained just $650 million for border wall/fence construction, which pales in comparison to the president’s $25 billion request.

As such, the president has suggested that some of the additional funding for the Pentagon would be diverted to wall construction as a national security matter.

“Because of the $700 & $716 Billion Dollars gotten to rebuild our Military, many jobs are created and our Military is again rich. Building a great Border Wall, with drugs (poison) and enemy combatants pouring into our Country, is all about National Defense. Build WALL through M!” Trump tweeted early Sunday.

Because of the $700 & $716 Billion Dollars gotten to rebuild our Military, many jobs are created and our Military is again rich. Building a great Border Wall, with drugs (poison) and enemy combatants pouring into our Country, is all about National Defense. Build WALL through M!